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nSTH ANNIVERSARY 

THE HIBERNIAN SOCIETY 

OF PHILADELPHIA 

FOE THE 

RELIEF OF EMIGRANTS FROM IRELAND 
1889 



ington, and rose to the rank of brigadier-general. 



'1 



SOCIETY OF THE FRIENDLY SONS 
OF ST. PATRICK. 



The first meeting of the Society of the 
Friendly Sons of St. Patrick — which is to-day 
existing as " The Hibernian Society op^ 
Philadelphia" — appears, from the minutes, 
to have been held at Burns's Tavern, Phila- 
delphia, on Tuesday, September Seventeenth, 
1 77 1, when fifteen regular and two honorary 
members were present. The original active 
members numbered twenty-four, the original 
honorary members seven, 

Stephen Moylan's name is the first on the list, 
and he was the first president of the society. 
He was again president in 1796. During the 
War of the Revolution he distinguished himself, 
was much in the confidence of General Wash- 
ington, and. rose to the rank of brigadier-general. 



He was one of the original members of the 
Society of the Cincinnati. Another of the 
original members was Mathew Mease, a native 
of Strabane, County Tyrone, a man of spirit, 
who deserted his counting-room for the perils 
and excitements of war life. He was purser 
on the " Bon Homme Richard," and, during 
the desperate encounter with the " Serapis," 
commanded the quarter-deck guns, which he 
fought gallantly until a wound in the head ne- 
cessitated his removal to the cockpit. Another 
brother of the gallant purser — and, like him, 
one of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick — who 
was equally possessed of the spirit of bravery, 
was John Mease. He was a shipping mer- 
chant, and an early and ardent friend of the 
cause of independence. He was a member of 
the First City Troop, and, on the ever-memo- 
rable night of December 25th, 1776, he made 
one of the twenty-four of that corps who 
crossed the Delaware with General Washing- 
ton, and assisted at the capture of the Hessians. 
He was one of the five detailed to keep alive 



the fires along the line of the American en- 
campment at Trenton to deceive the enemy, 
while the main body marched by a private way 
to attack the British rear-guard at Princeton. 
He served with the troop until the end of the 
war, and ended his days in Philadelphia as an 
admiralty surveyor of the port. He was the 
only man who continued, in latter times, to 
wear the old three-cornered hat of the Revo- 
lution, and he was everywhere familiarly known 
as " the last of the cocked hats." 

Thomas Fitzsimmons was a native of Ireland 
and rose to great distinction as a merchant 
of Philadelphia, both before and during the 
Revolution. He commanded a volunteer com- 
pany, and was engaged in active service during 
the war. He was for many years a member 
of the State Legislature of Pennsylvania, and 
represented Philadelphia in Congress with 
honor. He was for a long time Director of 
the Bank of North America, and was President 
of the Insurance Company of North America 
up to the time of his death. He was the 



adviser and counselor of Franklin, Hamilton 
and Jefferson, and the coadjutor of Robert 
Morris, His name is attached to the Consti- 
tution of the United States. 

Space forbids continuing this catalogue at 
length; brief mention must suffice. John 
Maxwell Nesbitt, who was the second Presi- 
dent of the Society, was a sterling patriot, and 
was the right-hand man of Robert Morris, 
during the Revolutionary War, in the supply 
of necessaries for the army and in the support 
of the public credit. He was President of the 
Society for nearly fifteen years. General John 
Shea was another founder. He was Collector 
of the Port of Philadelphia under Jefferson, and 
afterward a general in the militia, colonel of 
volunteers, and treasurer of the city. Colonel 
John Nixon was a native of West Chester, 
Pennsylvania, and a most efficient friend of 
America during the Revolutionary period. He 
was for some time an alderman of Philadel- 
phia, and had the honor of first reading the 
Declaration of Independence to the people 



assembled in Independence Square. John 
Dunlap, another of the founders, was born in 
Strabane, County Tyrone, in 1746, On com- 
ing to this country, he became a printer, and, 
in November, 1771, he issued in Philadelphia 
the first number of the " Pennsylvania Packet 
or General Advertiser." From September, 
1777 to July, 1778, while the British were in 
possession of Philadelphia, his paper was 
issued from Lancaster. After 1783, it was 
issued daily. Mr. Dunlap was printer to the 
Convention which met in Philadelphia before 
the Revolution, and also to Congress, and, as 
such, first printed the Declaration. 

Side by side with the names of Dunlap and 
the others we have referred to are many more 
of men of distinction — the leader of all being 
George Washington, who was adopted into 
the Society, December, 1781. Mad Anthony 
Wayne was another, Robert Morris another. 
Others were : Colonel Walter Stewart, John, 
Randle and William Mitchell, Thomas Bar- 
clay, John Boyle, George Fullerton, George 



Davis, Samuel Caldwell, the first clerk of the 
U. S. District Court at Philadelphia, Benjamin 
Fuller, the eccentric and eminent ship-broker, 
Tench Francis, the first cashier of the Bank of 
North America, and long the agent of the 
Penn family. Colonel Ephraim Blaine, grand- 
father of James G. Blaine, Colonel Turbutt 
Francis, Samuel Meredith, and Andrew Cald- 
well. 



THE HIBERNIAN SOCIETY. 



Some time after the conclusion of the Revo- 
lutionary "War, several members of the Society 
of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick, in con- 
nection with other benevolent persons, formed 
the design of creating a society whose object 
should not be solely convivial, but which, 
whilst it would tend to keep up and cherish 
that friendly and social intercourse which ap- 
pears more natural to the Irish than to the 
people of any other nation, would at the same 
time give exercise to other traits not less prom- 
inent in their character — generosity, charity, 
and protection to the distressed. Of the im- 
mense number of the surplus population of 
Ireland whom oppression and constant increase 
cast every year on the shores of America, many 
on their arrival are necessarily in destitute 
circumstances. A little assistance to these on 
their landing, and for some time afterwards, 



might enable them, by industry and good con- 
duct, to become prosperous men and useful 
citizens. To cany these objects into effect 
was the original design in establishing the 
Hibernian Society, and it has been uniformly 
adhered to down to the present time. 

The original articles of the Constitution of 
the Hibernian Society were adopted by the 
members on March 22d, 1790. Pursuant to 
the third clause of the Constitution, the Society 
met at the State House in Philadelphia on 
Monday, April 5th, and chose their officers as 
follows, viz : President, Plon. Thos. McKean, 
Esq., LL. D., Chief Justice of the State of 
Pennsylvania; Vice-President, General Walter 
Stewart; Secretary, Mr. Matthew Carey; Treas- 
urer, Mr. John Taylor; Counsellors, Charles 
Heatly, Esq., Jaspar Moylan, Esq ; Physicians, 
Dr. James Cunningham, Dr. John Carson. 
Acting Committee : Messrs. John Shea, Paul 
Coxe, John Leamy, Patrick Moore, Thomas 
Lea, Alexander Nesbitt, Thomas Proctor, 
Robert Rainey, Charles Risk, John Brown, 



John Strawbridge, Richard Adams. Com- 
mittee of Correspondence : Blair McClenachan, 
Esq., John Maxwell Nesbitt, Esq., Mr. Hugh 
Boyle. 

IN 18S9. 

With uniform good results the Hibernian 
Society has worked until the present time. 
It embraces among its members not only Irish, 
but those of other nations who desire to enjoy 
with them the pleasures of its convivial meet- 
ings, or extend the hand of kindness and 
protection to the needy and friendless emigrant 
from Ireland. It has in its investment fund at 
the present day about $70,000. The interest 
of this sum is distributed entirely in charity. 
The funds are derived from admission fees and 
donations and bequests. The wide-reaching 
charitable work of the society would fill an 
interesting chapter in the " annals of the poor." 
It would tell of distress relieved, and of the 
healing of wounds inflicted by misfortune and 
oppression ; but the maxim : " Let not thy left 
hand know what thy right doeth " is applicable 



to societies as well as individuals. Besides, it 
has ever been a characteristic of this society to 
shun ostentatious publicity ; and, after all, the 
most pleasing earthly memorials of benevo- 
lence are those seci-etly inscribed on the grateful 
hearts of the recipients of its bounty. More- 
over, there is the best assurance that the 
minutest acts of genuine charity are entered 
in another register, which neither time nor 
accident can ever erase or destroy. 

There are four regular meetings of the society 
every year. On that held the 17th of March, 
the officers and standing committees are elected 
previous to the anniversary dinner. 

With the exception of the Acting Committee 
the duties of the officers and committees are 
light and pleasant : for, where the objects of an 
association are charity and social enjoyment 
only, questions likely to disturb harmony or 
embarass business but rarely arise — especially 
when, as in the case with the Hibernian Society, 
the funds of the institution are in a prosperous 
condition. 



No expenses, except such as are incident to 
the regular business meetings, are paid out of 
the funds of the society. No contribution but 
the initiation fee is ever required from the 
members. If a member choose to join his 
fellows at the anniversary dinner, or at an extra 
quarterly meeting in the winter months, he 
does so at his own proper expense. 

Usage strictly prohibits any allusion to politics 
or sectarianism, either at the business or social 
meetings of the members. Hence it may be 
fearlessly asserted that these meetings have, 
for eighty years, been more exempt from excit- 
ing and unpleasant discussions than those of 
any other society composed of such dissimilar 
elements. 



PRESENT OFFICERS. 



PRESIDENT. 

WILLIAM McALEER. 

VICE-PRESIDENT. 

COL. THOMAS J. GRIMESON. 

SECRETARY. 

THOMAS D. FERGUSON. 

TREASURER. 

SIMON J. MARTIN. 

COUNSELLORS. 

WILLIAM GORMAN. 

HENRY PHILLIPS COLEMAN. 

PHYSICIANS. 

JOSEPH MARTIN, M. D. 
MICHAEL O'HARA, M. D. 

■ FINANCE COMMITTEE. 

• COL. B. K. JAMISON. 
DANIEL DONOVAN. 
DAVID McMENAMIN. 

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 

EDWARD J. HERATY. 
PHILIP J. WALSH. 
JOHN M. DOYLE. 



PROMINENT DECEASED 
MEMBERS. 



Gen'l George Washington. 
Gen'l Anthony Wayne. 
Gen'l Stephen Moylan. 
Gen'l John Cadwalader. 
Gen'l Henry Knox. /^ 

Commodore John Barry. 
Gen'l Walter Stewart. 
Gen"l William Thompson. 
Gen'l William Irvine. 
Gen'l John Shea. 
Gen'l Fdward Hana. 
"P* omas Fitzsimmons. 
L>x. John Cochran. 
Richard Bache. 
John Dickinson. 
George Meade. 
Col. John Nixon. 
John Maxwell Nesbitt. 
Col. Francis Johnston. 
Robert Morris. 
John Barclay. 

Dr. Robert 



Gen'l Andrew Jackson. 

Gen'l U. S. Grant. 

Commodore Charles Stewart. 
^Thomas McKean. 

Gen'l Callender Irvine. 

John K. Kane. 

David Paul Brown. 

John Sergeant. 

Blair McClenachan. 

John Binns. 

John Bannister Gibson. 

Thomas Burnsides. 

Gen'l Robert Patterson. 

William A. Porter. 

Gen'l William Acheson. 

Peter A. Browne 

Matthew Carey. 

Henry C. Carey. 

William Duane. 

William Findlay. 

R. Shelton ^Mackenzie. 
M. Patterson. 



MP. 



